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Topic:Animal Health
Animal Health encompasses a broad range of topics focused on maintaining and improving the well-being of equine species. This field addresses various aspects of horse care, including disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and management of health conditions. Key areas of interest include equine nutrition, vaccination protocols, parasite control, dental care, and the management of chronic conditions such as laminitis and colic. Additionally, animal health research in horses investigates the impact of exercise and training on physical health, the role of genetics in disease susceptibility, and the development of new therapeutic approaches. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the latest advancements, challenges, and best practices in preserving and enhancing the health of horses.
Vectors and vector-borne diseases of horses. Most diseases of horses with zoonotic importance are transmitted by arthropods. The vectors belong to two very distantly related groups, the chelicerate Ixodidae (Acari = ticks) and the hexapod Diptera (true flies). Almost all relevant species are predestined for transmitting pathogens by their blood-sucking habits. Especially species of Diptera, one of the megadiverse orders of holometabolan insects (ca. 150.000 spp.), affect the health status and performance of horses during the grazing period in summer. The severity of pathological effect depends on the pathogen, but also on the group of ve...
ADP-induced platelet aggregation after addition of tramadol in vitro in fed and fasted horses plasma. Adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation in fed and fasted horses after addition of tramadol hydrochloride was evaluated in vitro. On 10 horses citrated blood samples were collected 2h after feeding (fed animals) and 21 h after feeding (fasted animals). Final concentrations of ADP 1 and 0.5 μM, and tramadol hydrochloride (1, 15, 30, 45 and 60 min after the addition of tramadol) were used to determine the maximum degree and initial velocity of platelet aggregation. Repeated measures multifactor analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to evaluate the effect of feeding/fasting con...
Associations between yearling exercise and interruptions during race training in Thoroughbred racehorses. To investigate the effect of exercise during yearling sales preparation on the risk of interruptions during training in Thoroughbred racehorses. Methods: 114 Thoroughbred racehorses. Methods: Information regarding the daily exercise of yearlings during sales preparation was obtained prospectively from a convenience sample of stud farms. Yearlings were followed to entry into race training, and subsequently, daily training information was recorded until the end of the racing season. Competing-risks survival analysis was used to model time from entry into race training to voluntary training inter...
Seroprevalence and risk factors of Trypanosoma evansi infection in horses in Peninsular Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was designed to assess the seroprevalence and risk factors associated with Trypanosoma evansi infection among horses, using a total of 527 blood samples obtained from eight states in Peninsular Malaysia. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on risk factors associated with T. evansi seroprevalence. The overall seroprevalence detected by card agglutination test for T. evansi (CATT/T. evansi) was 13.90% (73/527, CI: 11.2-17.1%). Female and exogenous horses showed a higher risk in association with the disease seroprevalence compared to other groups. The major...
Assessment of unassisted recovery from repeated general isoflurane anesthesia in horses following post-anesthetic administration of xylazine or acepromazine or a combination of xylazine and ketamine. To compare the effects of sedative doses of acepromazine, xylazine or xylazine/ketamine administered to horses after isoflurane anesthesia on the quality of recovery and anesthesia recovery times. To determine if recovery scores improve after repeated consecutive anesthetic episodes. Methods: Prospective, randomized, crossover study. Methods: Fifteen adult research horses, 6.5±3.4 years old and weighing 499±40 kg. Methods: Horses undergoing three anesthetic episodes with isoflurane for magnetic resonance of the forelimbs were administered acepromazine (0.02 mg kg(-1) i.v.) or xylazine (0.3 m...
Object habituation in horses: the effect of voluntary versus negatively reinforced approach to frightening stimuli. The ability of horses to habituate to novel objects influences safety in the horse-human relationship. However, the effectiveness of different habituation techniques has not been investigated in detail. Objective: 1) To investigate whether horses show increased stress responses when negatively reinforced to approach novel objects, compared with horses allowed to voluntarily explore the objects and 2) whether a negatively reinforced approach facilitates object habituation. Methods: Twenty-two 2-3-year-old Danish Warmblood geldings were included. Half of the horses (NR group) were negatively rei...
The association of age at first start with career length in the Australian Thoroughbred racehorse population. Studies of Thoroughbred racing populations have provided evidence of a positive effect on racing careers for horses that commence racing as 2-year-olds. Currently, research investigating the presence of this effect in the Australian Thoroughbred racing population is limited. Objective: To investigate the association between age at first start and career length in the Australian Thoroughbred population and estimate the risk of racing retirement for horses racing in Australia based on age at first start, career earnings, number of starts as a 2-year-old and distance raced. Methods: Data were col...
[Epidemiological aspects of West Nile virus infection in Morocco]. Morocco has undergone three outbreaks of West Nile fever. The first, in 1996, began with a case in a horse herd in Benslimane (central region) and spread to neighboring cities (in the central and northwestern regions). The next two outbreaks appeared after identical 7-year epidemiological latency periods (in 2003 and 2010) in the same area and season. The only human case, which was fatal, occurred during the 1996 outbreak. The West Nile virus strains circulating in Morocco are closely related to other western Mediterranean strains and are characterized by high virulence in horses.
Gastrointestinal nematode burden in working equids from humid tropical areas of central Veracruz, Mexico, and its relationship with body condition and haematological values. The east coast of Veracruz, Mexico, has an important equine population used for working in rural production systems. The objectives of this study were (1) to calculate the prevalence of tropical working equids (donkeys, mules and horses) infected with gastrointestinal nematodes (GINs) and the GINs involved, and (2) to measure the body condition score (BCS) and haematological values for each working equid and its relationship with faecal worm egg count (EPG). One hundred and forty working equids were randomly selected from five different villages along the central coast of the state of Veracruz...
The basics of farriery as a prelude to therapeutic farriery. Domesticated horses need hoof care, because it is rare for wear and growth of the hooves to be in perfect equilibrium. During the shoeing interval, the hoof grows downwards and forward in the direction of the horn tubules, losing some degree of angle. Few horses have perfect limb conformation. The shape of a hoof of a limb with conformation defects adapts in a predictable way. If, for therapeutic or performance reasons, the hoof-shoe combination is modified, there is a not a lot of leeway in the trim of a particular foot, whereas the applied shoe type, placement, and adjustments provide endles...
Farriery for hoof wall defects: quarter cracks and toe cracks. Conditions that result in the loss of the structural integrity of the hoof wall, such as quarter and toe cracks, are not uncommon and usually manifest in lameness. The successful management of these problems involves identifying and addressing the underlying causes, stabilization of the foot, and committed follow-up.
Therapeutic farriery: one veterinarian’s perspective. Therapeutic shoeing is best directed at a specific diagnosis, but in the absence of a specific diagnosis, it is frequently directed at a symptom. There are only so many ways to modify the function of the foot with trimming and shoeing. The design of a horse shoe may often be modified to improve one aspect of foot function. Modifying a horse shoe to improve one aspect of foot function almost invariably impacts another aspect of foot function. The application of horse shoes may be based on a specific diagnosis or directed at a symptom. The application of shoeing principles is best approached usi...
The first report of Rickettsia spp. in Amblyomma nodosum in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Ticks are vectors of various pathogens, including Rickettsia spp., which are responsible for causing an emerging disease of global significance. In the present study, an epidemiological survey was performed to identify Rickettsia spp. of the spotted fever group (SFG) in ticks and wild hosts in a native forest adjacent to livestock farming activity. The ticks and blood were evaluated by a hemolymph test and by PCR using the primers CS78 and CS323, which target a partial sequence of the enzyme citrate synthase (gltA) gene. Positive samples by PCR were further tested with the primers Rr190.70p an...
Rapid method for the simultaneous determination of six ionophores in feed by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. A simple and highly sensitive LC/MS method was developed for the simultaneous determination of six ionophores--lasalocid, monensin, laidlomycin, maduramycin, salinomycin, and narasin--in feed. The procedure involved extraction of 1 g of feed with 4 mL of methanol-water (9 + 1, v/v) by shaking on a platform shaker for 45 min. After centrifugation, the extracts were diluted with methanol-water (75 + 25, v/v) and analyzed without any cleanup. The analysis was performed on a Betasil C18 column (150 x 4.6 mm id, 5 pm particle size) connected to an LC/MS system operated in the atmospheric pressure c...
Effects of two different dietary sources of long chain omega-3, highly unsaturated fatty acids on incorporation into the plasma, red blood cell, and skeletal muscle in horses. The objective of this study was to examine the effects of different sources of dietary omega-3 (n-3) fatty acid supplementation on plasma, red blood cell, and skeletal muscle fatty acid compositions in horses. Twenty-one mares were blocked by age, BW, and BCS and assigned to 1 of 3 dietary treatments with 7 mares per treatment. Dietary treatments were: 1) control or no fatty acid supplement (CON), 2) 38 g of n-3 long chain, highly unsaturated fatty acid (LCHUFA) supplement/d provided by algae and fish oil (MARINE) containing alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaen...
The genes of all seven CYP3A isoenzymes identified in the equine genome are expressed in the airways of horses. In the present study, we examined the gene expression of cytochrome P450 3A (CYP3A) isoenzymes in the tracheal and bronchial mucosa and in the lung of equines using TaqMan probes. The results show that all seven CYP3A isoforms identified in the equine genome, that is, CYP3A89, CYP3A93, CYP3A94, CYP3A95, CYP3A96, CYP3A97 and CYP3A129, are expressed in the airways of the investigated horses. Though in previous studies, CYP3A129 was found to be absent in equine intestinal mucosa and liver, this CYP3A isoform is expressed in the airways of horses. The gene expression of the CYP3A isoenzymes varied...
Whole transcriptome analyses of six thoroughbred horses before and after exercise using RNA-Seq. Thoroughbred horses are the most expensive domestic animals, and their running ability and knowledge about their muscle-related diseases are important in animal genetics. While the horse reference genome is available, there has been no large-scale functional annotation of the genome using expressed genes derived from transcriptomes. Results: We present a large-scale analysis of whole transcriptome data. We sequenced the whole mRNA from the blood and muscle tissues of six thoroughbred horses before and after exercise. By comparing current genome annotations, we identified 32,361 unigene cluster...
The Strongylidae belonging to Strongylus genus in horses from southeastern Poland. Postmortem parasitic examinations of the large intestines of 725 slaughtered horses from individual farmers in southeastern Poland were carried out. The examinations were carried out monthly since February 2006 until January 2007 (except for August 2007 because of a technological stoppage in the slaughterhouse). The examinations included the intensiveness and extensiveness of the infestation of the Strongylidae belonging to the Strongylus genus. The Strongylidae were found in 26.5% of the examined horses. Strongylus vulgaris was the most dominant nematode and had a 22.8% prevalence, Strongylus...
The potential of embryo transfer in a German horse-breeding programme. A reference horse-breeding programme with 13500 foals each year was modelled with ZPLAN+. This new software for the optimization of the structures in breeding programmes is based on ZPLAN. In two scenarios, the implementation of a rigorous selection of mares was implemented. In scenario I, the mare performance test was the point of selection, while in scenario II, further information on 20 competitions in two more years is available. These selected mares were used for embryo transfer (ET), partly in combination with multiple ovulation (MOET). The selection intensity and the number of foals out...
Modified Kuhnt-Szymanowski surgical procedure for secondary cicatricial ectropion in a horse. A 1-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding was presented to the University of Florida's Large Animal Hospital (UF-LAH) for correction of ectropion of the right lower eyelid. The ectropion was the result of a lower eyelid laceration. A primary repair was performed by the referring veterinarian; however, the horse prematurely removed the sutures and the wound healed with inversion of the eyelid margin. Surgical correction of the entropion, with removal of tissue from the lower eyelid, resulted in cicatricial ectropion. During the initial evaluation at UF-LAH, a corneal ulcer was noted in the right eye...
Prevalence study in horses infected by Gasterophilus sp. in an eastern region of Poland. A survey to determine current prevalence of Gasterophilus spp. (bot flies) in equids (n=400) at necropsy in slaughtered horses was conducted at the abattoir in Rawicz. The evaluation was performed according to sex, age, larval stages, severity of infestation and localization, respectively. Only Gasterophilus intestinalis and Gasterophilus nasalis were detected. The prevalence determined in the eastern part of Poland was of 47%. The high prevalence of this parasite infection in the Polish horse population confirms that Gasterophilosis spp. has to be taken into serious consideration and prophyla...
